A friend asked me to read and give my opinion to John 17, the passage in the bible where Jesus is praying to his Father. He has just been talking to his disciples and He knows the time has come that he will soon return to His Father.
This whole prayer is a beautiful lesson for all who want to follow Jesus. It's full of love, a plea to save us from the evil of this world and to become one with God and His son. I will show some of the words that I liked the most, but it's best that you read the passage yourself.
The prayer starts with this:
::::::::::::::::Father, the time has come for you to bring glory to your Son, in order that he may bring glory to you. And you gave him power over all people, so that he would give eternal life to everyone you give him. Eternal life is to know you, the only true God, and to know Jesus Christ, the one you sent. I have brought glory to you here on earth by doing everything you gave me to do. Now, Father, give me back the glory that I had with you before the world was created.:::::::::::::::::
and:
::::::::::::::::Holy Father, I am no longer in the world. I am coming to you, but my followers are still in the world. So keep them safe by the power of the name that you have given me..::::::::::::::::::
What do you think of this? Have you ever had such an advocate and friend?
::::::::::::::::I am on my way to you. But I say these things while I am still in the world, so that my followers will have the same complete joy that I do. I have told them your message. But the people of this world hate them, because they don't belong to this world, just as I don't. Father, I don't ask you to take my followers out of the world, but keep them safe from the evil one. They don't belong to this world, and neither do I. Your word is the truth. So let this truth make them completely yours.::::::::::::::::::::
He is not only speaking to His Father about his disciples, but about all of us:
::::::::::::::::::::I am not praying just for these followers. I am also praying for everyone else who will have faith because of what my followers will say about me. I want all of them to be one with each other, just as I am one with you and you are one with me. I also want them to be one with us. Then the people of this world will believe that you sent me. :::::::::::::::::::::::::
It ends with:
::::::::::::::::::::Good Father, the people of this world don't know you. But I know you, and my followers know that you sent me. 26 I told them what you are like, and I will tell them even more. Then the love that you have for me will become part of them, and I will be one with them.:::::::::::::::::::::::
Anneke Hut 22 Aug 2008
The words I have written to my friend about this beautiful prayer are these:The Father loves Jesus as much as He loves Himself and us. When we are one, everything that happens to one of us, will happen to all of us. God can not be with sin, so he sent His Son. God's love for us is so huge that He gave to us His only Son, so that we could become part of Him. The only way He could do it. And the Son being one with the Father loves us as much as the Father loves us. Only love is the key to be one. With this great love in us we will be happy to serve God. Eagerly waiting on His commands. All happiness is through Jesus. The love can not be taken from us by the world, it's in us from the minute God has given it to us, making us one with the Great spirit in Jesus' name. All who follow Jesus and learn what He teaches us will become one. Not of this world but in the holy house of the Lord. All what is done to us is done to the Father, because we are part of Him, one with Him. The servant is not greater than the master, we must obey and honour God to become His child like Jesus taught us, let His command and love be our only reason for existence in this world. To be prepared when the Lord will celebrate with us our home coming in Heaven. All who follow Jesus will be protected by his power because they belong to the One. The Son and the Father are one. Jesus has lived in this world to take our sins away, so that we can be one with God, when we live by his words, following His teaching.
Reply